Hope
by geekchick1804
Summary: De-aged fic. Jim beams down to a planet and is turned back into a child. Fills this prompt: A de-aged fic where Spock has to take care of a kid-Kirk; preferably Kirk only listens to Spock, and freaks out when he's not around.
1. Chapter 1

Hope

Disclaimer: I don't own.

A:N/ I accidentally deleted this chapter off of the ksarchive and then I lost my copy of this chapter when my computer deleted everything off of my hard drive. I hope this is as good as the previous version, also I read Kyliselle's How high the moon (finally, which is excellent) and changed some of it so it doesn't look like that any more. Enjoy! Oh and I am still looking for a beta, you'll get to read the story before anyone else if you help *Bats eyelashes*

Chapter 1

"I do not wish to start as a relationship with you, I am in a satisfactory relationship with lieutenant Uhura; she is a loyal, affectionate, intelligent person who respects my Vulcan upbringing. You are a petulant, rude, selfish person whose intelligence is under question and whom has a death wish."

Jim looks shocked and hurt although he tries to hide it. The two officers are standing in Jim's quarters, Jim had set up a chessboard and ordered them a meal (vegetarian to appease Spock), Spock had barely entered the room before he had stopped the evening from progressing.

"If you think that of me then why did you want to become my first officer?"

"To protect she who is to be my wife, you death wish will cause many problems and I do not wish to lose lieutenant Uhura because of your actions."

Jim looks even more hurt. Jim only wanted Spock to be friends with after old Spock had told him that they would be the greatest of friends and closer than brothers. He wanted a friendship nothing more (he just wasn't ready for a relationship, he had lost to many people he had cared about in his life and he didn't want to lose another but there was something about Spock that he just needed to be close to him), and for Spock to believe that Jim would end up killing Uhura through a mistake was so painful, it felt like someone had taken a knife to his chest and twisted it deep in his heart. Jim and Spock had so much in common, if only Spock could see that.

"I wouldn't do that, I don't have a death wish. And I didn't invite you over to try and get with you, I asked you here because I wanted to be your friend. I know what you are going through..."

"You know nothing, whilst unlike the more traditional Vulcan's I have friends I have no use for someone like you. I will only tolerate a professional relationship with you and if you do not respect this I will transfer to another ship and lieutenant Uhura will come with me."

Jim nods his head in shock and Spock turns and leaves. Jim sits down on the floor in a corner and starts to cry. Jim stays in the same place for over an hour and the lights naturally turn off to conserve power and he stays in the darkness not caring. That's where McCoy found him a few hours later, huddled up in a corner in the dark, tears falling down his cheeks silently.

"Dammit kid, what's happened?"

"I invited Spock over for a meal and game of chess, to try and start that epic friendship that old Spock had with his captain but Spock... this Spock told me he doesn't want anything to do with me and the only reason he had accepted the position of first officer was because he didn't want my 'death wish' to end up killing Uhura. Do I really have a death wish? Am I really that bad? What do I do bones? All I want is for us to be friends and he treats me as though I am nothing, as though I'm worthless. It's been six months since the start of the mission, eight months since the narada incident and he still wont talk to me. I've tried to apologise repeatedly for what I said about his mother and he just wont listen. I tried to tell him that I know what he is going through and he just wouldn't listen. Why does he hate me so much?"

McCoy sat down next to Jim and pulled him into his arms.

"I don't know kid, maybe the cold hearted bastard is just that cold hearted. You are the most loyal and supportive friend anyone could ever have an if he cant see that then he is more of an idiot than I thought. Why are you so hung up on that friendship anyway?"

"I don't know, when I saw and felt old Spock's affection for his captain, I don't know it just felt right as though they could do anything together even cheat death together. I just wanted someone I could trust as much as I do you and because he is a full commander I would have to worry about the appearance of favouritism."

"It'll be alright kid, if he does see how much of a great friend you would be then as I said he's an idiot. As the mission progresses he will no doubt realise that he has made a huge mistake and will come back on bended knee grovelling for forgiveness."

McCoy then stands up and holds out his hand, Jim takes it and McCoy helps Jim to his feet.

"Come on kid, you've got a big day ahead of you tomorrow and you don't want to be late so it's time for all good star ship captains to go to bed."

Jim snorts and then laughs.

"You are such an asshole, you do realise that don't you?"

McCoy smirks.

"Of course."

They walk into Jim's bedroom and Jim gets changed for bed in front of McCoy, it's not the first time it has happened and so McCoy was used to it. Jim goes into the bathroom to take a quick shower but then pops his head out the door.

"Oh bones there are some forms on the PADD next to my comm unit that I need you to sign, I should have got them done before we headed out but what with... I just didn't think about it."

"What are they?"

"They are next of kin forms, you know for if anything should happen to me, my will and a couple of benefit forms for if I die during active star fleet duty. They are all pretty basic."

"Yeah alright I'll sign them."

Jim goes back into the bathroom and McCoy sits down at the desk and starts reading and signing the forms, it doesn't take him long and so he is finished before Jim has completed his shower. Jim leaves his shower and gets dry and dressed in the bathroom and comes out into the bedroom. McCoy joins him.

"You gonna be alright kid?"

"Yeah I'll be fine, it's not the first time I've been shot down, I doubt it will be the last."

Jim gets into his bed and McCoy sits down next to him.

"You sure you don't want me to stay because I will if you need me too."

"Nah I'll be fine. You go get some rest and I'll send off those forms in the morning before I go down to the planet."

McCoy nods, tucks Jim in and leaves Jim's quarters, ever since he had met Jim he had been treating the guy like a child which is so wrong but when he and jocelyn had suffered a miscarriage and then their marriage breakdown, he had turned his pent up fatherly instincts to Jim who had lost so much and who had never known his father. Fortunately Jim took his mother henning with good grace, in fact McCoy figured that Jim enjoyed it. McCoy didn't know everything there was to know about Jim, knew that there were dark pieces of his past that Jim never alluded to let alone spoke of in great deal.

As McCoy made his way down to his sickbay to give it one last check over before turning in for the night (as he did every night) he turned his thoughts to the pointy eared first officer and all the subtle ways he could make Spock pay for his insults to Jim.

TBC

A/N: Please review and don't forget if you want to be my beta, let me know.


	2. Chapter 2

Hope

A/N: My thanks to SORAL179 for betaing.

Chapter 2

Still trying to get his breathing under control, he got up from his bed and ordered a glass of water from the replicator. It was the middle of gamma shift and he had had another nightmare about the death of his mother, if only they had arrived at Vulcan sooner, it might have been possible to save her. He walked into the bathroom and wiped away the evidence of his tears, displeased with what he saw.

"Get a grip Jim, you cant afford to fall apart. Not with everyone watching, especially that cold blooded asshole."

Jim dried his face and headed back into his quarters, calling for the computer to raise the lights he moved over to the desk, knowing that there will be no sleep for the rest of the night. Sitting down at the desk and he turned on the computer, and made a start on the ever increasing paperwork before remembering to send off the next of kin forms to Pike to prevent another bollocking for not having them done at the start of the mission. Fortunately in the last six months they had only being doing milk runs and they had had no major incidents although he had still managed to end up in sickbay a couple of times.

Jim carried on working through the mountains of paperwork and by the time he was supposed to be getting up at he had finished most of it which meant that when he got back from the away mission later today he would have less to do. The paperwork would have probably been done quicker if he had had some help from his First Officer but last night before going to sleep Jim had decided that Spock had made his choice and Jim was no longer going to go after that epic friendship, besides he had Bones.

Jim got up off out of his chair and stretched before making his way into the bathroom to take a quick sonic shower before getting dressed but when Jim entered the bathroom he was shocked to see both Spock and Uhura in the shower: they weren't washing. Jim quickly decided to leave the bathroom and made his way back into his quarters, he was unsure why that scene shocked him so much, he should have realised before he entered the room as they weren't actually being that quiet, he also needed to know why the sight of the two of them together hurt so much. Foregoing the shower he dressed and left his quarters quickly as the noise of their lovemaking knotted his stomach. Jim made his way to the Officers' Mess, normally a quiet location, and ordered up breakfast before taking a seat at the back of the mess.

Not ten minutes later Spock and Uhura walked into the room, Jim watched as Uhura brushed her fingers against Spock's (in what Jim knows to be a Vulcan kiss). Spock turned a rather fetching shade of green. Jim looked away from the couple turning his attention to his meal, he didn't look up again until he had to get up and put his tray in the recycler. Spock and Uhura were acting extremely professional but for the fact they did not even acknowledge his presence. Jim put his tray away and left, the knot in his stomach got tighter.

He headed to the conference room and waited for the rest of the Heads of Department to arrive so that they can do the pre-mission briefing before beaming down to the newest poterntial member of the Federation. Five minutes before the meeting is due to start, the Department leads start to fill into the room, first to enter is Lieutenant Giotto of Security, Scotty follows not long after and then Sulu and Chekhov arrive together, McCoy arrives two minutes before the start of the meeting. The last ones to arrive are Spock and Uhura who turn up only seconds before the beginning of the meeting. Once they arrive Jim starts the briefing, there isn't much to discuss as they are a well known planet who had great trade links with the Federation but since the destruction of Vulcan they had decided that they needed added protection due to their proximity to Klingon space. They were also keen to arrange another trade deal for several medicinal plants that were similar in structure and appearance to ones thought only to occur on Vulcan before it's destruction.

It was determined that a small group consisting of Jim (although Spock had strongly disagreed with Jim going down but Jim had overridden him), Spock (who had decided to go down even though it causes the ship to be without either of the two commanding officers), and Sulu (his knowledge of botany being crucial).

Six hours later

McCoy was sat in his sickbay office waiting for news of the away team, he was still coming up with ways to punish Spock for his treatment of Jim. So far he had; shaving the pointy eared bastards eyebrows, transferring him off the ship due to his deleterious effect on the Captain's health, dumping Spock's ass (accidentally) on a ice planet, infecting him with a vicious strain of Vulcan flu, injecting with any number of painful (and possibly unnecessary) inoculations and vaccines and finally just insulting Spock's mother (although that last one he probably wouldn't do).

"Commander Spock to sickbay."

"McCoy here, what's happened?"

"You are required to attend the transporter room, we are bringing the captain back to the ship as he is currently having an allergic reaction to one of the native drinks."

McCoy grabbed his kit and ordered a medical team with an anti- gravity stretcher to get to the transporter room. McCoy and the medical team arrive just as the away team is being beamed back up to the ship but there is a problem; the transporter is having trouble with one of the patterns in the buffer. The transporter beams Spock and Sulu onto the pad with no difficulty but it won't recognise Jim's pattern, Scotty attempts to bring Jim's pattern back. Finally it seems that Scotty has succeeded as there is another beam but when the pattern finishes materialising the person stood on the pad is not captain Kirk or at least not the adult version. There is a child stood on the pad, McCoy immediately moves to the child, who looks to be about five or six years old and does a quick scan.

"Oh my Gods, this is Jim."

TBC


	3. Chapter 3

Hope

A/N: Here's the next chapter, i hope you enjoy. My thanks go to SORAL179 again for betaing (you're amazing).

Chapter 3

"Oh my Gods, this is Jim!"

Silence fell, even Spock was shocked. Scotty turned to his console to try to work out what had happened.

"The allergic reaction the captain was suffering from must have affected the transporter, " Mr Scott insisted unable to come up with an alternative explanation.

McCoy turned and glared at Scotty.

"Gee you think? Figure out if it did cause this and fix it. Damn transporters, this is why I hate these stupid things."

McCoy was distracted by someone tugging on his trousers and he turns back to Jim.

"Where am I? Where's my mommy? Where is Sam?"

McCoy's heart clenched but he managed to stop the pain from showing on his face.

"Awh , Hell kid."

McCoy knelt to bring himself to Jim's eye level.

"I'm Doctor McCoy, you can call me Bones and you are on board the starship Enterprise."

At the mention of being on board a ship Jim begins to panic and cry and nothing that McCoy did would calm him down. McCoy reached into his trouser pocket to pull out a sedative, a standard part of his portable hypo collection, but before he could use it Spock walked over and knelt down next to Jim to the left of McCoy. McCoy shocked stopped what he was doing and watched as Spock held out his arms to Jim.

"James you are safe on this ship, no one on board will harm you."

Jim looked up at Spock, his big blue eyes shining.

"But... but my daddy died on a ship. I don't want to die like my daddy."

"As I stated previously, no one on board will harm you, we are also on board the safest ship in the Federation."

"I want to talk to mommy."

Again McCoy's heart clenched.

"Indeed, perhaps we might place a call to Earth and you may speak to her."

"Actually Spock we are out of range and it will be a while before we are back in range."

"Doctor I can assure you..."

McCoy raised his eyebrow and then glared at Spock until Spock turned back to Jim and apologised for being mistaken. Jim's face falls but he seems to accept the situation and McCoy breathed a silent sigh of relief. Spock looked confused but he calms Jim down and McCoy asks him to accompany him to sickbay with Jim.

In sickbay McCoy ran as many tests as he can think of to check on Jim's condition but after three hours was no closer to understanding what caused Jim's transformation. Jim fell asleep on the biobed his small hand clutched in the much larger hand of Spock, who had not left Jim's side throughout the testing as the first time he had tried to leave Jim had begun to scream and cry. Once Jim was deeply asleep McCoy motioned to Spock to follow him into his office; ordering nurse Chapel to alert them if Jim woke up before they were finished. Still confused over the doctors actions in the transporter room Spock gently placed Jim's hand back on the bed and followed the doctor. As soon as the door closed Spock gets straight to the heart of the conversation that he presumed was going to start.

"Why did you lie about the ship being out of communications range of Earth, you are well aware that we are not?"

McCoy pulled out his secret stash of bourbon and offered Spock a glass but Spock refused and on raises his eyebrow. McCoy poured himself a small drink and knocks it back in one go replacing the bottle back to its secret hiding place.

"Have a seat."

Spock sits down in the chair opposite mccoy gracefully, wondering what could be so serious that the doctor would take to drinking during shift.

"What I tell you in this room, stays in this room. Got it?"

At Spock's nod McCoy takes a deep breath.

"How much do you know about our esteemed captain?"

Spock thinks through all the times he has ever heard of or seen Jim before answering.

"He is a cocky, arrogant, self absorbed, promiscuous, childish, shallow 'party-boy'."

McCoy grips the glass still in his hand so tightly that it shatters, ignoring the breaking glass McCoy calmly asks Spock how he came to his conclusion.

"I have come to this conclusion through a number of different ways, through first hand accounts from trusted friends and colleagues, my own observations through the academy and his subsequent behaviour during the Narada incident and the following eight months since, and through I believe it is called the plum-vine?"

"Grapevine," corrected McCoy. "Okay let me spell this out to you in small words so that your cold blooded, small mind can clearly understand. Jim is not promiscuous; he has slept with a grand total of two people in his entire life. He is not shallow; he cares deeply about the person behind the looks. He also wasn't a 'party-boy', he was cramming a four year course into three years and had a double focus so he didn't have time to go out and party."

Mccoy pauses.

Except for his birthdays but as they never fall in the academy term it is up to him how he spends them." He is not arrogant, cocky or self absorbed; it is a front to the insecure, lonely, miserable person that he really is. He has been through so much in his life, judged so often against his father and found wanting, he doesn't need you to judge him as well. Jim is the most brave, loyal, friendly person you could ever meet. I suggest you recheck your information. Oh and by the way you weren't exactly a shining beacon during the Narada incident either, you almost killed Jim twice, you kissed your student and you were generally an asshole."

Spock has the grace to flush in shame at his actions but it doesn't stop him getting angry.

"I had just lost my entire planet and my mother."

"You might have been the only one on the ship to lose their planet but you weren't the only one to lose their mother, Jim's mother was the captain of the Farragut."

At the look shock that flitted momentarily across Spock's face (there was only a handful of survivors from the Farragut and they were all now working on the Enterprise) McCoy smirks.

"You didn't know that did you. He knew exactly how you felt when beamed back from Vulcan, yes he used that against you when he took control of the ship but he never meant it maliciously and he did try to apologise for his actions repeatedly but you never gave him the time of the day did you. You think you know all about Jim, you know nothing of him and if you ever speak to him the way you did last night I will throw you off the ship, do you understand?"

Spock nods silently.

"Good, now go sit with the kid."

When Spock stands up ready to leave without trying to get out of his new resposibility it causes McCoy to frown.

"Why are you so nice to the kid anyway?"

"Just as I was unaware of the Captain past, there are gaps in your knowledge of mine."

Spock knew only too well the feeling of isolation that Jim had been projecting, it had been an all too familiar part of his childhood, but he had no desire to indicate his vulnerability and the shame that his childhood fears had engendered.

"Good, continue to be nice to him and I won't kill you, but the first derogatory word out of your mouth towards him and I will hunt you down."

Spock once again nodded and then left, he should have been insulted but found McCoy's gruff protectiveness comforting, wishing that he had known that kind of protection as a child. Like Jim he too had become quite adept at creating a mask to hid his own insecurities.

McCoy need not fear on his account but Starfleet command that would be a different matter he wondered how long he could keep the current situation secret.

A/N: Please review.


	4. Chapter 4

Hope

Chapter 4

Jim woke up the next morning and smiled when he saw the Elf called Spock (although his mom had told him there was no such thing but there was a species called Vulcan that looked a lot like the elves in his books) sat in the chair next to him.

"Good morning James."

Jim smiled shyly before he yawned and stretched his arms.

"Morning."

"I will let Dr McCoy know that you are awake."

Jim nodded and Spock stood up from the chair and made his way to doctor McCoy's office. Spock hesitated for 0.6 seconds before alerting the occupier that he was asking for entry; he was still reeling from the revelations of the previous day and as he had been unable to meditate, sickbay was insufficiently quiet. He was still dealing with the uncomfortable sensations that this had caused him.

The door opened and McCoy stood on the threshold of his office.

"I have come to inform you that James is awake."

"Oh good, I'll give him another check up and then you can take him to breakfast in the mess hall."

"Do you not think it prudent to have another member of staff take care of James?"

McCoy shook his head.

"Not at the moment no, I don't know why but for some reason the kid trusts you, maybe when he feels less scared I will help out but until then it has to be you."

"Indeed, very well. I will inform mister Sulu that he will have the conn today as I will be unable to be on the bridge."

McCoy smiled slyly.

"You could always take the kid up to the bridge with you."

"No I could not, it is against star-fleet policy to allow children on to the bridge of its ships."

"Well technically the kid is the captain."

"As of 3.46 hours this morning that is not correct, I am acting captain until either we reach Earth or until we find a way to reverse his condition, depending on which method is quickest. We have a maximum of 2.3 days to reverse his condition before we reach Earth."

McCoy looked confused.

"We are on our way back to Earth?"

Spock nodded.

"Indeed, I informed the admirals last night, they are currently looking for a member of James' family to take care of him; otherwise they will place him into care, especially if it turns out that James' condition is irreversible."

"They can't do that, he has no family left, at least no one he would trust with his best interests. I am his next of kin, he had registered me as sent in the forms that should anything happen to him I will be put in charge of his care. Obviously it wasn't done with this in mind, more if he became brain damaged or was in a coma but the principle still stands."

Spock raised an eyebrow, he did not desire the captaincy and he needed to find a way to reverse the de-aging. He also found that a further motivation existed; a need to apologise for his past behaviour.

"I was unaware of this, assuming that the captain registered his intention we have a little longer to solve the problem before Starfleet intervenes."

"He should have sent them off the night before the mission so the admirals should have received them by now."

"Very well I will look into it and if it does turn out that James sent off the forms we may be able to at least delay our return to Earth."

McCoy nodded and left his office and headed over to Jim, Spock followed him closely. Jim sat up when he saw the two men approach.

"Hey kid, how are you feeling this morning?"

Jim shrugged his shoulders.

"I'm good."

McCoy ran his scanner over Jim again before he declared him healthy. Spock then took Jim to the mess hall where they sat and ate their breakfast, Spock took the opportunity to speak to Sulu who was sat at a table with ensign Chekhov and let him know that he had the bridge today but if there were any problems he was to inform Spock immediately. Jim was rather uncomfortable as people continued to stare at him, when he asked Spock why everyone stared at him Spock responded that he never understood human behaviour and couldn't possibly be expected to comment, Jim seemed to take this at face value although Spock was surprised to find that Jim had understood what he had said; the normal vocabulary for a five year old child being much smaller than Spock's use.

Spock watched as Jim became more and more ansty as the morning went on, all the activities he had researched the previous evening never seemed to hold Jim's attention for long and Spock had to repeatedly chase after Jim when Jim got it into his head to try and escape from the 'boring elf'. Their activities were interrupted when Admiral Nogura hailed the ship and demanded that Spock took charge of the bridge. Spock decided to leave Jim with nurse Chapel (after explaining that children were not allowed on the bridge) before making his way to the bridge, Jim didn't start to cry fortunately for Spock's ears and he was able to make his escape. However he should have realised that Jim would never let anything stop him from doing what he wanted as evidenced by Jim's appearance on the bridge 8.36 minutes after Spock had left him in sickbay.

Nogura was on screen and when he saw Jim was on the bridge and the admiral made his feelings very clear regarding the lack of discipline this represented on the Vulcan's behalf, demanding the child's removal. Spock was barely able to keep his own rage under wraps, a Vulcan child would have responded to his instructions and Nurse Chapel's inefficiency had embarrassed him, however to express his irritation in the child's presence was inappropriate. He took the child's hands to guide him to the turbolift away from Nogura's vitriol.

Jim's innate sense of justice and fair play caused him to pull away from Spock and yell at Nogura in front of the bridge crew.

"You're just a big, fat meanie …... and no one likes you because you're such a Grinch."

Nogura glared at the child.

"How dare you, you insolent little brat. It's a good thing that I am able to get rid of you once and for all."

Nogura turned and glared at Spock.

"I demand that you increase to maximum warp, the quicker that little brat is removed from my ship the better, Nogura out."

"It's my ship!" Jim stated defiantly.

The view screen went dark and all the bridge crew started laughing until they caught the look on Spock's face.

"James, I had told you that you were not allowed on the bridge, why did you disobey me?"

"I dunno."

Jim had wrapped his arms around himself and bowed his head, it was at that point Spock realised that Jim expected to be struck, Nogura had frightened him.

"James will you promise not to enter the bridge again?"

Jim nodded and began to perk up when he saw that he was not to be punished.

Uhura watched the conversation between Spock and Jim and wondered when Spock had changed his opinion of Jim. The last Nyota knew Spock still thought of Jim as the careless cadet who had cheated on his exam and stolen the command of the Enterprise from him.

"James I will take you back down to nurse Chapel, you must promise to stay with her."

Jim shakes his head.

"It's so boring, she gave me baby books, I'm not a baby."

Unsure of what to say Spock fell back onto his typical response.

"Indeed."

"Captain, I could look after the Leetle Captain if you vant?"

Spock looked over at Ensign Chekhov who had spoken.

"You are needed at your station, however after your shift you may look after James."

Spock crossed the room to the turbo lift.

"Come along." Spock's tone brooked no argument.

Jim followed Spock, when he reached Spock's side he held out his hand, Spock hesitated for 0.86 seconds before he took Jim's hand into his own. Jim's smile lit up the entire bridge, and when the lift arrived and the unlikely pair left the bridge the entire bridge burst out laughing and cooing over Spock and Jim's actions.


	5. Chapter 5

Hope

A/N: I am so sorry for the wait guys I've moved house to be closer to my family and then I was suffering writers block. This chapter is unbetaed as SORAL179 is no longer able to beta for me, I thank her for helping me on the previous chapters and I hope she does well. If anyone else would like to beta for me please let me know.

Chapter 5

Spock had just finished his shift on the bridge and was making his way back down to sickbay in order to pick up Jim and take him to the mess hall for dinner when the red alert came on. Spock stopped at the nearest comm unit in the corridor between the turbolift and sickbay when he was hailed by the bridge.

"Bridge to Captain Spock."

"Spock here."

"Sir a Orion ship has just dropped out of warp off our port bow."

Intense anger filled Spock, ever since the destruction of Vulcan, the parasitical Orions had started kidnapping and selling Vulcan's to the highest bidder. Fortunately not many had been taken and many of those who had been taken were able to be found before any harm could come to them, the enterprise had the highest count of finding and rescuing kidnapped Vulcan's in the fleet.

"I am on my way back to the bridge, Spock out."

Spock made his way quickly to the bridge and took control. Shields had been raised but somehow a small group of Orion's had made it onto the ship and were beaming people off the Enterprise and straight into the holds of the Orion ship. Spock ordered security to apprehend the Slavers and to prepare a separate team to beam over to the Orion ship and take back their crew. It is only when they do a check of who is missing from the ship that they realise that Jim is gone, he had been taken. Fury began to rise up in Spock, a Vulcan's imperative to protect the children in their care caused Spock's control to slip and made him decide to be on the away team. Spock got up from his chair and informed Sulu that he had the conn before he made his way to the transporter room.

Once Spock had reached the transporter room he saw that a team had been assembled and were ready to go, Spock picked up a phaser, communicator and a transport beacon and joined the team on the transporter platform.

"Energise."

The security team watched on in horror as Spock methodically and ruthlessly worked his way through the ship, taking out any and all Orions in his path until they came upon the storage rooms where they found their missing crew and Captain Kirk along with several unknown vulcans. The room was very cold and Jim was struggling to keep warm, one of the vulcans had pulled Jim into her arms in order to share body heat.

Jim looked so small and innocent in her arms that Spock was forced to stop and take a breath, when Jim realised that Spock was in the room he pulled away from the female Vulcan and ran into Spock's arms.

"I want my mom, I want to go home." Jim started to sob into Spock's arms.

Spock paused, he didn't want to break the little boys heart by telling him that his mother was dead. He knew that if Amanda had died when he was Jim's age it would have killed him, for the first time in his life Spock didn't know what to do, Spock picked Jim up and held him close to his chest all the while thinking about how to get around this subject without lying to Jim. Fortunately the security team had done their job and had disabled the rest of the crew and taken down the ships shield allowing them to be beamed back to the Enterprise. McCoy was waiting in the transporter room and as soon as he saw Jim he plucked him out of Spock's arms and ran a tricorder over him, Spock barely contained the growl that had risen up in his throat when he felt Jim leave his arms. Spock followed closely behind McCoy, his recently surfaced paternal instincts demanding that Jim was to be kept safe and in his sight at all times.

McCoy carried Jim over to a biobed and did a quick scan of him, McCoy noticed that the kid was still shaking and was suffering from a slight hypothermia, which was easily taken care of. Spock sat down in the chair next to Jim, still unsure of what to say to him. Jim sat up on the bed and looked beseechingly at McCoy.

"When can I go home? I want my mommy."

"Oh kid, I'm really sorry but we can't head back to Earth yet we have to deal with the bad guys who tried to take you away."

Jim's face fell and he started to lie back down.

"Okay."

McCoy carefully covered the kid up before heading off to look at the other former prisoners. Spock stayed at Jim's side during dinner which they ate in sickbay before he pulled out a PADD to complete and file his report when Jim decided it was time to sleep. Spock settled in to spend the night by Jim's side, to keep an eye on the young captain, Spock spent the next few hours reading over the reports from the other members of the security team and from the bridge crew; he almost blushes when he reads how the security team are impressed by his actions on board the Orion ship. Spock doesn't expect any trouble but it arrives in the form of a very angry girlfriend called Uhura.

"Spock, I thought you were going to join me in my quarters tonight." Uhura's hands were on her hips in an aggressive manner, Spock held back a sigh.

"I apologise Nyota, I have been busy with dealing with the fallout from the Orion's attack." Uhura seemed to be slightly mollified by his answer.

"It just would have been nice for you to let me know that you weren't coming."

"Again I apologise."

"Have you finished all your reports?"

"Indeed."

"Then come home."

"I cannot." Uhura looked confused.

"Why not?"

"I do not wish for James to be left alone." Uhura waved her hand in a dismissive manner.

"I'm sure that Doctor McCoy will see to his needs."

"Indeed I believe he will however I wish to make sure that James is looked after properly, he is under my care as I am temporarily the Captain and my Vulcan ancestry sees him as a member of my clan much like I see every one on board as such. Since he is a child I have a protective instinct that demands he is too be taken care of as I allowed him to be taken."

"Spock it wasn't your fault."

"Logic tells me as such however my human half does not believe it."

"I think that is the first time you have ever spoken about your human half like that."

"It is, the healer I have been speaking to weekly has informed me that by denying half of who I am for most of my life I have reduced my ability to get past the loss of my planet."

"Oh Spock." Uhura goes to touch him but Spock flinches away minutely, recent events have caused him to rethink his relationship with her and he cannot allow the status quo to continue.

"I will join you tomorrow night, I believe we will need to talk about our relationship."

"What, why?"

"My priorities have changed, I wish to start a family, not just to help my species continue but because I have recently discovered that I do wish for a family of my own."

"Are you breaking up with me?"

Spock looked towards Jim when uhura's ire causes her voice to become louder.

"I believe that this conversation should be in private."

Uhura looked towards Jim as well.

"It's not like the little brat is going to tell anyone."

Spock looked back at Uhura and his gaze hardened.

"It would be best to remember that he is your commanding officer."

Uhura glared right back at Spock before she turned on her heel and walked away without another word.

"She's mean, I don't like her."

Spock was startled and he looked back at Jim.

"I did not realise that we woke you, I apologise."

Jim shrugged his shoulders.

"It's okay. I'm not tired."

"Indeed." Spock watched as Jim sat himself up on the biobed.

"Maybe we can con-verse?"

Spock's lips quirked upwards at Jim's attempt to speak like him. He allowed his mind to search for an appropriate subject of which to converse with Jim about.

"James, why did you tell Admiral Nogura that this was your ship?"

Jim blushed and looked away shyly.

"Cuz I heard one of the people talk about how the ship belongs to Captain James T. Kirk and not Scotty? It's my name and I don't understand how it can be my ship but it felt right, it felt true."

Again Spock's lips quirked up and again Spock had to come up with a way to distract Jim (because they still don't know if Jim's condition is reversible).

"I see, I suggest you get some sleep James, you will have a busy day tomorrow and if you behave I may allow you to be on the bridge."

Jim's face lit up in delight, Spock smiled to himself as Jim settled back down in bed. Being around James Kirk, no matter the age, seemed to bring out his more human and illogical side. Spock settled back in his chair and carried on reading the reports that he had put to one side whilst making the mental note to get at least an hours worth of meditation before shift tomorrow.

TBC

And again I'm sorry for the wait.


End file.
